Friday, March 23, 2012

Film on Organic, No Till Gardening

This link will take to you a great film on organic, no till gardening. WARNING: DO NOT WATCH WHEN HUNGRY!

If you need newspaper, you should ask around your neighborhood, I've had
many stacks given to me by people who don't make it to the recycle bin often. Remember, don't use the shiny
advertising pages, they have been treated with things you don't want to eat!

Please note that you will want to
put aged manure, compost, or soil under the wood chip compost the first year, or you
will need to plant down into the dirt below the wood chips. After it decomposes
in future years, it will not horde nitrogen from you plants and you'll be able
to plant right in it. Pay special attention to the wood chip demonstration garden in
the second half of the film that was started from scratch.

Also, you will need to water more frequently here in Utah (than in Washington) because we are a dry climate. You will not need to water as much as you would without the wood chips, but be sure to check the moisture level under the chips frequently. I have noticed that it stays moist under the chips for a few days longer than areas that don't have the chips.

My fruit trees have seen the most water benefit, only needing to be watered once a month. It has saved my peas from burning up in this extraordinary hot spring we're having.

5 comments:

I watched the film and am so excited to get to work. We had been looking for a solution to watering and our prayers were answered. You can always count on God! He does love His children and He is watching out for them.

Payson landfill is out of the composted wood chips. I'm starting to call other places. Any other suggestions? We're working on putting in the no- till gardens at a few more places, even across the summer and fall to be ready for next spring. Now that I've got so many people willing and wanting to get started, I don't want to lose my chance!

Upcoming Classes and Events

Mapleton Ready is providing a free winter gardening class by Caleb Warnock, author of Backyard Winter Gardening. It will cover among other things: hot beds, the best winter varieties to grow, and hoop houses.

How to Become a Member

If you would like to become a member of the Utah Seed Exchange you will need to:

1. Commit to learning and actively saving seeds, at least one new variety a year. You must test your seeds for purity by growing a few and matching them to the parent plant before you share them with anyone.

2. Become familiar with the concepts of seed saving. Please catch up with the information and classes that have been taught. They are listed under the 'Pages' section on the right. Go through the pages and read and watch the information.

3. You will need to own and reference 'Seed to Seed' by Suzanne Ashworth (amazon.com) and it is recommended that you own and read 'The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency used by the Mormon Pioneer' by Caleb Warnock which is a great book on seed saving in Utah.

When you have done these things, email me your request for membership at utahseedexchange@gmail.com and let me know that you have completed the requirements.